Dalton man arrested for DUI drugs after 911 calls regarding extremely reckless driver

According to a Dalton Police Department incident report, On March 15th, 2023, at 7:25 PM Officer McDaniel was parked in the area of Glenwood Avenue and Tyler Street when he observed a Ford Edge from a BOLO regarding a reckless driver. Officer McDaniel reported, “[I] clearly saw the vehicle driving erratically as it was in motion. This was made manifest by the fact that the vehicle was rapidly and without just cause slamming its brakes while also quickly swerving side to side within its lane. [I] then utilized my emergency blue lights and began to pull into traffic so that [I] may position myself behind the brown Ford Edge. At that time, [I] suspected that the driver was possibly involved in some kind of physical altercation with a passenger. A physical fight between the driver and a passenger would have explained the erratic and unsafe movements. As [I] began to position myself behind the brown Ford Edge, the vehicle accelerated toward traffic that was at a standstill at the light. As I got closer, the brown ford edge made a sharp right-hand turn into the parking lot of “Wheel Zone” located on Glenwood Avenue. The vehicle jumped the curb as he entered the parking lot. As he entered the lot, he turned the vehicle sharply to the right and slammed on his brakes twice before continuing his turn and eventually coming to a full rest. Taking these observed facts into consideration, [I] exited my patrol vehicle and drew my service weapon. [I] kept my pistol pointed downward towards the ground.” Officer McDaniel took the driver, identified as Omar Jamal Awad, 34, of Dalton, into custody. Omar was sweating profusely. He seemed excited and appeared to be struggling to control himself physically. Officers confirmed that he was the only one inside the vehicle itself. The entire time the officer read him his Miranda warning, he continued to twitch, move around, and struggle to control himself. This lack of physical control was witnessed throughout the entire investigation. He said that he was “test driving” the brown Ford Edge. That would later be discovered to be a lie. Officer Allen was then requested to respond to the scene because of his higher level of experience in calls such as these. During field sobriety testing, Omar showed several signs of drug impairment. Rather than answer if he consented to the state-administered chemical testing of his blood, he stated, “This is against the law” over and over again. Officers located Oxycodone and Fentanyl on Omar. Officers also found a small package of Naloxone (Narcan) inside his wallet. Officers made contact with the vehicle’s registered owner, who was actually a customer of Omar’s business, and he was driving her vehicle around without her knowledge. Officers discovered a partially opened bottle of “Jim Beam” vanilla-flavored liqueur in the vehicle. Officers then obtained a search warrant for Omar’s blood which was signed by a judge. Omar was booked into the Whitfield County Jail, charged with possession of schedule two controlled substances, driving while suspended, reckless driving, possession of an open container, and DUI drugs- less than safe.

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